The expected stable economic growth in 2016 is projected to positively affect the labor market, curbing the unemployment rate among people of working age to 2.2 per cent.

Following improvements last year the outlook for the labor market remains optimistic, according to the Director of the Institute of Labor Science and Social Affairs, Ms. Nguyen Thi Lan Huong.

Vietnam will have around 55.3 million people in its workforce within the next 12 months, accounting for 77.8 per cent of the population aged 15 and above. About 54.1 million will have jobs, Ms. Huong said.

By the end of the year the transport and storage industries will employ 8.8 per cent more workers, processing and manufacturing 8.2 per cent, and information and communications 4.5 per cent.

Mining, meanwhile, is expected to employ 8.8 per cent fewer workers and agriculture, forestry and fisheries 1.6 per cent fewer.

A recent report from the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs showed that 53.5 million people were employed in the last quarter of 2015, a slight rise from the third quarter and against 2014.

More than 1.05 million people, or 2.18 per cent of the working-age population, were unemployed during the quarter, down sharply from the third quarter but up slightly compared to the same period of 2014.